About this role
Job summary
9-month secondment / fixed-term
We are seeking an exceptional operational leader to join Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust (BHRUT) as our Interim Chief Operating Officer.
This is a pivotal role for a values-driven, delivery-focused leader who is passionate about high-quality patient care, thrives in complex environments, and brings deep expertise in operational improvement across both planned and urgent and emergency care. Above all, you will lead with compassion and be able to demonstrate a track record of delivering sustainable improvement through inclusive leadership.
As Interim COO and an Executive Director on the Trust Board, you will play a central role in shaping and delivering the Trust's strategic priorities. You will drive improvements in patient outcomes, quality, operational performance, and financial sustainability, while modelling behaviours that embed inclusion, diversity, and our organisational values.
Main duties of the job
You will join a dynamic, patient-centred executive team committed to improving outcomes for our communities. A key priority will be leading the continued turnaround of our Type 1 A&E performance an enduring challenge across North East London while sustaining our strong delivery in planned care, diagnostics, and cancer performance.
We are making significant progress:
Delivering against national targets for planned care recovery and diagnostics Substantially improving cancer waiting times Implementing changes that are putting us on track to achieve 76% all-type A&E performance this year
We are clear about the challenges in patient flow across our hospitals and what is required to address them.
Key Responsibilities
Provide strategic and operational leadership as a member of the Trust Board Lead day-to-day operational performance across the Trust Drive improvements in urgent and emergency care, patient flow, and elective recovery Champion quality, safety, and patient outcomes Ensure financial discipline and operational efficiency Foster a culture of inclusion, compassion, and high performance Act as an ambassador for the Trust with system partners and stakeholder
About us
We're an organisation that is getting better and better and our improvements are driven by a determination to deliver care we're proud of and our patients are happy with.
They are benefitting from a new electronic patient record (we were the last acute trust in London to introduce one) and our maternity services have been rated good by the Care Quality Commission.
We operate from two main sites - KGH in Goodmayes and Queen's Hospital in Romford. We have two busy emergency departments with more than 346,000 people visiting them last year. We're campaigning to secure the £35m we need to transform the A&E at Queen's and get rid of corridor care.
We're proud of our regional Neurosciences Centre, Radiotherapy Centre and Hyper Acute Stroke Unit. We're also part of the North East London Cancer Alliance.
We run a Women's Health Hub in Ilford; an Ageing Well Centre in Hornchurch; and Community Diagnostic Centres (CDC) at Barking Community Hospital and at St George's Health and Wellbeing Hub. These CDCs are open 12 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The majority of our 8,400 staff - who come from 146 different countries - live in the three diverse London boroughs we serve and are from black, Asian and minority ethnic groups. Many can work flexibly and more than 400 of them are on our Ofsted accredited apprenticeship programmes. We're proud to be a London Living Wage employer.
Job description Job responsibilities
About YouYou are an experienced NHS leader with a proven track record of delivering operational improvement in complex health systems. You bring:
Strong credibility at executive level Deep understanding of urgent and emergency care pressures and elective pathways Experience of driving patient flow improvements in acute settings A collaborative approach, with the ability to build effective system partnerships A clear commitment to compassionate, inclusive leadership Importantly, you will recognise the unique challenges of North East London, where reliance on acute services is higher than in other systems. You will be motivated to work both within the hospital and across the wider system to improve pathways and outcomes for patients.
For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Fiona Wheelers PA, LeeAnn Hamilton, on 01708 435039 ext. 2439 or via email at [email protected].
As part of your application, please submit a covering letter, quoting your application reference number, directly to LeeAnn Hamilton via email at [email protected].
Shortlisted candidates should be available for interviews on 28th May 2026.
Successful applicants would need to commence no later than the 6th July 2026.
If you have any questions about the application process, require support in completing your application, or need any adjustments (for example, due to a disability), please contact Bali Dhani, Recruitment Manager via email [email protected] or 01708 435000 ext. 5718.
Person Specification
Experience Essential
Demonstrate a track record of effective and efficient delivery at senior leadership, operational management level in a healthcare environment at senior executive level for a period of at least 5 years. Experience of ensuring high standards of operational performance, safety and quality are met
Desirable
Experience in a financially constrained provider organisation that has achieved significant positive impact for its patients, staff and communities Experience of working with or in non-hospital based parts of the health and care system. Successful leadership and management experience gained in leading complex, multi-faceted change and modernisation programmes.
Strategy Essential
Evidence of shaping the strategic direction of a team or an organisation in conjunction with the Trust Board and a role in communicating the strategic vision effectively across the Trust and externally.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Employer details Employer name Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust
Address Queen's Hospital
Rom Valley Way
Romford
RM70AG
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.bhrhospitals.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)